System and Method for the Capture, Storage and Manipulation of Remote Information

ABSTRACT

A system and method for the capture, storage and manipulation of remote information is disclosed. The system includes at least one remote information capture device located at a remote site for capturing remote data, a central database accessible by the remote capture device for storing the captured remote data, and a computer program operative to manipulate the captured data. The method includes the steps of capturing remote data, storing the captured remote data, and manipulating the stored data.

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/615,211, filed on Jul. 7, 2003, which claims priority from CanadianPatent Application Serial No. 2,392,637 filed Jul. 5, 2002 and CanadianPatent Application Serial No. 2,406,808 filed Oct. 7, 2002, the entirecontents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to data collection andmanipulation methods and systems, and more particularly to a datacapture system and method.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With the growth of age-restricted products such as lottery tickets,adult magazines, guns and ammunition, fireworks, condoms, smokingpatches, medical supplies, alcohol, tobacco, vehicles, and rentalmovies, as well as age-restricted services such as gambling, movietheaters, and adult entertainment and licensed establishments,businesses and governmental agencies have had to develop policies todetermine proof of age. The use of driver licenses to serve asidentification in various applications has grown to include applicationssuch as the purchase of alcohol, tobacco or lottery products, as well asfor gambling in casinos, movie theaters, allowing ingress into licensedestablishments. All of these applications have an age requirement forthe purchase of a product at a point-of-transaction or for ingress intoan establishment, and the driver license is the document used to provideage identification and all age verification is commonly accomplished ina relatively quick manner.

There are various forms of identification that are commonly accepted bybusinesses and government agencies as proof of age. The most convenientforms of identification are government issued documents such as adriver's license, passport, social security card, voter's registrationcard, and immigration card. Another example of an identificationdocument is a smart card that contains memory provided by an embeddedintegrated circuit. These documents provide personal informationregarding the authorized bearer of the identification document in atleast one machine-readable medium such as a barcode or magnetic stripe.Many identifying documents have more than one machine-readable mediumfor storing identifying information.

For example, a driver's license typically includes a photograph, printedtextual information, and visible encoded information such as a barcode.In some cases a magnetic stripe provides a higher level of security andadditional information regarding the bearer. For example, theinformation stored in the magnetic stripe of a driver's license mayinclude identifying information about the authorized bearer, such as eyecolor, hair color, height, weight, and biometric patterns. The barcodeand magnetic stripe may also include data related to ascertaining theage of the bearer. Alternatively, the above information may be stored inthe memory of an embedded integrated circuit on a smart card.

There is also a need to authenticate the contents of a driver license,such as authenticating identification for credit card and check writingat point-of-sale. Further uses include authenticating driver licenses inpolice cars, ports of entry such as domestic and foreign airports,seaports, rail stations and border checkpoints, and points of entry togovernment/military buildings and other sensitive areas. Verifyingidentity is also important in other areas such as child day care centersand post offices to verify parcel pick-up and drop-off.

The problem of readily available fraudulent identification cards hascost many retailers fines, loss of tobacco and liquor vending licenses,and subjected them to other forms of civil and criminal liability. Overthe years, various attempts have been made to prevent or detect the useof fake identification cards, but without a great deal of success. Tohelp prevent the use of fraudulent identification, government agencieshave begun issuing new driver licenses with embedded code, or evenencrypted coded information, with machine-readable formats that conformto industry/governmental standards.

Establishments wishing to avoid the sale of tobacco or alcohol to minorsmay check the photograph and date of birth printed on driver's licenses.However, many youths and others have easy access to counterfeitidentification. Accordingly, there is a need to confirm the correct ageof a customer wishing to purchase alcohol, tobacco and otherage-controlled products and services by reading encoded data on at leastone machine readable medium.

Early prior art methods of consumer personal and preference data captureinvolved the use of paper ballots, and the manual entry of handwritteninformation from these paper ballots. Using paper ballots for datacollection and personnel for manual data entry. Traditional analysis ofthis data is conducted with spreadsheets.

More recent prior art identity verification methods and products involveservices and data collection systems that include cumbersome andoutdated equipment, if available at all, and often go unused since it islabor intensive to verify ID's. This equipment is typically non-userfriendly and the equipment and manpower are typically underutilizedresulting in a lack of information sharing within industries that couldotherwise benefit from sharing such as the bar & beverage industry,special interest groups like MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), thetobacco industry, and health organizations and associations.

Although company specific loyalty and rewards cards have been around formany years, there has been no attempt to use a standard form ofidentification such as a driver's license to identify consumers byseveral companies and tie multiple company specific customizablemessages, such as “Good Customer” or “Banned From This Store”, to each.Furthermore, there is currently no way to easily set flexible rewards invarying degrees of granularity down to a consumer specific level. Thereis also a problem of identifying “double dippers” or multiple peopletrying to get restricted access using a single piece of identificationor multiple copies of the same piece of ID. Existing methods rely on theperson responsible for ensuring restricted access to identify “doubledippers”.

As well, capturing email addresses has been a relatively tedious task.It has been typically accomplished in the past by collecting emailaddresses using paper ballots. In instances where consumers wereeligible to win a prize for providing the ballot information the prizewas awarded simply by putting all the ballots in a box and randomlydrawing one to select the winner.

What is needed is a method of authenticating the contents ofidentification cards so that any access to a product or service havingan age requirement is satisfied at the time of access in a quick andconvenient manner, to safeguard businesses and others against thepenalties that may otherwise be encountered from the use fraudulentidentification cards. What is further needed is a way to collectdemographic data efficiently on a mobile computer in a manner thatminimizes the data entry time. Currently, demographic data is largelycollecting using paper based systems. In cases where mobile computersare used, the process of entering data is very time consuming.

For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for an improved method andsystem for remote data capture, storage and manipulation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a system and method for thecapture, storage and manipulation of remote information. The systemincludes at least one remote information capture device located at aremote site for capturing remote data, a central database accessible bythe remote capture device for storing the captured remote data, and acomputer program operative to manipulate the captured data.

In an aspect of the present invention, at least one capture deviceincludes a barcode reader. In an aspect of the present invention, atleast one capture device is a wireless device to enable operatormobility. In an aspect of the present invention, the remote informationis patron data.

The method includes the steps of capturing remote data, storing thecaptured remote data, and manipulating the stored data.

Venues and businesses have the ability to demonstrate not onlycompliance with legislation but good corporate governance with beingable to display and effect due diligence proof, therefore benefitingtheir best business practices but also their proactive approach thatthey can then leverage into good public relations within the community.The invention is easy to use for untrained data collection labor. Thereis a high rate of consumer data collection ability of the system as wellas an ability to quickly and cost effectively display captured data tothe clients management team in a more timely manner than a paper ballotsystem.

The invention enhances the profitability, cost effectiveness,efficiency, and quality of the ID experience for customers of theverifier and the identity verification products and services community.The invention can incorporate loyalty and rewards programs.Administration is quick, simple and done on an automated basis enablingcosts to clients to be kept as low as possible. The data providesdetailed and accurate information on the target market accounting ofcharges relative to the data requested, thus the mountains of supportdocumentation clients received previously through alternative channelsare no longer needed. It can become so simple that the acceptance andtransmission of the data can become the invoice and authorization forpayment.

Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparentto those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the followingdescription of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction withthe accompanying figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with regard to the followingdescription, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 is an overview of an ID authentication system in accordance withthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is an overview of an ID authentication method in accordance withthe present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a handheld device in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates an information capture screen;

FIG. 5 illustrates an e-mail manipulation screen;

FIG. 6 illustrates a signature capture screen;

FIG. 7 illustrates customizable survey questions with drop down lists;

FIG. 8 illustrates an email invitation;

FIG. 9 illustrates an event response status window;

FIG. 10 illustrates a customer information window;

FIG. 11 illustrates an event analysis window;

FIG. 12 illustrates a sample demographics report window;

FIG. 13 illustrates a manual entry general information screen;

FIG. 14 illustrates a manual license number entry screen;

FIG. 15 illustrates a first name screen;

FIG. 16 illustrates a last name screen;

FIG. 17 illustrates a details summary screen;

FIG. 18 illustrates “Tap to Win!” contest screens;

FIG. 19 illustrates a photo info screen;

FIG. 20 illustrates consumer names being displayed;

FIG. 21 illustrates only the winner's name shown;

FIG. 22 illustrates manual consumer data capture screens;

FIG. 23 illustrates an end-user email;

FIG. 24 illustrates; an end-user email survey; and

FIG. 25 illustrates a dynamic image and consumer information captureprocess flow.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is directed to a system and method for thecapture, storage and manipulation of remote information. As illustratedin FIG. 1, the system 10 includes at least one remote informationcapture device 12 located at a remote site for capturing remote data, acentral database 14 accessible by the remote capture device 12 forstoring the captured remote data, and a computer program 16 operative tomanipulate the captured data.

In an embodiment of the present invention, at least one capture device12 includes a barcode reader. In an embodiment of the present invention,at least one capture device 12 is a wireless device to enable operatormobility. In an embodiment of the present invention, the remoteinformation is patron personal and preference data. In an embodiment ofthe present invention, the remote capture devices 12 include wirelessLAN and/or WAN-enabled units that can communicate with the centraldatabase 14 in real time over the Internet. This eliminates the need todock the unit in a cradle to dump the data to the central database 14.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the method includes the steps of capturingremote data 102, storing the captured remote data 104, and manipulatingthe stored data 106.

TABLE 1 Reference No. Information 112 JURISDICTION (U.S. (STATE) ORCANADA (PROVINCE)) 114 GRAPHIC OR LOGO OF JURISDICTION 116 DOCUMENT TYPE118 NAMES AND ADDRESS OF INDIVIDUAL OF THE DOCUMENT 120 PARTICULARS OFTHE INDIVIDUAL OF THE DOCUMENT 122 SIGNATURE OF INDIVIDUAL OF THEDOCUMENT 124 PHOTOGRAPH OF INDIVIDUAL OF THE DOCUMENT 126 IDENTIFICATIONNUMBER OF DOCUMENT 128 DATE OF BIRTH (DOB) 130 US128 BAR CODE 132MAGNETIC STRIP 134 ANSI-20.1; 1993 CHARACTER SET OR 2D BAR CODE PDF-417136 JURISDICTIONAL TEXT

TABLE 2 Information Captured License Number Name (First, Middle & Last)Date of Birth Sex Address, City, Province, Postal Code Height/WeightHair Color/Eye Color License Expiry Date

TABLE 3 Email Address Entry Keys Provided for: Backspace Clearing theEntry First Name Last Name Toggling Domains Toggling Domain Extensionssuch as .com, .net, and .ca Consent Proof of Consent Simple Yes/No -send me information on future events/offers Allows for signature captureData optimized to occupy minimal disk space

Team members use the hand-held units to collect information on aconsensual basis from driver's licenses of patrons at the establishment.They also collect email addresses and responses to survey questions,such as: “How many beers a week do you drink on average?” “What is yourprimary beer brand preference?” and “What University/College do you goto, if any?” At the end of the event, the team leader connects the unitto a phone line and the data is transferred in encrypted form toback-end servers over a dial-up Internet connection. While the unit isconnected, any program updates are automatically conducted including newsurvey definitions, thereby allowing the data collection team to conductlocation-specific or seasonal surveys. With the data residing onservers, the team leader then logs on to a relevant section of the siteand creates a new event to which the data is assigned. Analysis can thenbe conducted on this data specifically or the whole data set collectedto date. For example, the team leader can view the responses and otherstatistics by event type, such as Blind Data Promotion or event ticketsgiveaways, and/or location.

The system can be used in a similar fashion for other markets likeautomotive dealerships, real estate agents for open houses, or energysavings corporation representatives. The invention provides an ageverification information product and their related loyalty and rewardprogram data mining. The invention facilitates the capture of barcodeand magnetic stripe age verification data from mobile readers. Theinvention can be expanded to become a gateway to gather consumerinformation, conducting field survey and gathering email addresses willallow a company to offer a far greater range of meaningful services totarget clients. The various age-verification and data collection canvirtually remove the possibility of human error in authenticating ID'swhile ensuring the accuracy and quality of data collected. The hand heldwireless devices can track specific data that can be shared byappropriate parties through secured Internet communications.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the system includes ahandheld unit that uses a docking cradle to upload captured informationinto the remote hosted database while using a proprietary softwareapplication, providing is a tool for cost effective, real-timecommunications of related functions and delivery of all reportingnecessary to satisfy client needs, and provide a data collection gatewayinto customer initiatives including loyalty and reward programs for manyindustries such as breweries and tobacco companies. As throughtraditional loyalty programs, points or other special offers, can beawarded based on frequency of purchase and/or other criteria. Theseoffers are tied to their unique ID or driver's license number enablingthrough one-to-one marketing. This will provide valuable informationthat to date has been virtually impossible to acquire. The inventionfacilitates the gathering, storing, management and representation ofthis information while respecting the requirements of both consumers andother regulatory as well as legislative standards by securely hostingthe customer's collected data on servers.

The invention can significantly lower direct marketing costs through theuse of the database information to target demographic specificcustomers, and provide a full loyalty and rewards program databasemanagement system. The invention establishes innovative initiatives toreduce the overall cost of identity verification for establishments byestablishing a uniform policy on entrant ID verification, and ease ofverification and authenticity of same for the first time creates a moreefficient and productive business model for the establishment. No moreguessing at the authenticity or validity weight of an ID.

By utilizing a verification system, establishments are able to conduct acustomer appreciation direct mail campaign. Internet-based softwarefacilitates the introduction of data-exchange for the purposes of directmail and electronic mail marketing programs. A customer data listincluding complete driver license information can be collected for tensof thousands of patrons. Establishments are able to gather data on thesepatrons and identify those that are repeat customers, and run directmail campaigns to these customers.

Additionally, security personnel of an establishment can use the dateand time stamped patron data collected to assist police in identifyingalleged assault perpetrators as well as assist police fraud squads andcredit card company security to identify credit fraud rings. In testsinvolving over 200,000 driver's licenses, multiple results achieved inage authentication and verification have lead to hundreds of confiscatedfalse ID's, patron data collected on an opt in/out permission base andenhanced ability for the security personnel to track establishmentpatrons on a dated and time stamped basis.

Challenges faced by brewers with a target demographic are twofold: one,the collection of customer data was traditionally conducted using alabor-intensive paper ballot system and secondly, the demographic targethas a tendency to have identification from a residence that is not theirresidence during the school year and often changes form term to termtherefore keeping accurate and up to date customer data is almostimpossible. The invention integrates an email capture function into aportable handheld unit that is more relevant to the target demographicthan a street address. Students have a tendency to keep the same emailaddress all through their college or university years, making the taskof keeping electronic addresses up to date easier than traditionaladdresses. Data collection teams can increase their accuracy of datacollection while at the same time increasing the volume of uniquecustomer names. Permission-based opt-in survey information and emailaddresses can be filtered into a back office for analysis purposes. Fromthis database, brewers can use these addresses to promote special eventscalled “database parties” at licensee establishments.

Several “special event” type data parties can be hosted using the systemto collect and store patron information that can be later used for eventsuccess measurement purposes. The system offers businesses increasedrates of data capture as with the previous system, reduced cost comparedto previous systems, more accurate and reliable data collected thanprevious systems, and email capture on handheld unit allowing costeffective customer initiatives for transient college and universitypopulation.

If on a typical Thursday night, students make this their last stop ofthe night and as a result venue capacity is unfulfilled prior to 11 pm.In conjunction with the business's database, students can be invited toattend an event at a pub by email invitation sent out at 3 pm on aTuesday night for a Thursday night promotion. The promotion can offerdouble their odds to win if they RSVP and in attendance by 9:30 pmThursday night of the event. In addition, they can be put on a VIP guestlist so they will not have to wait in the regular line. Upon arriving,they present their ID to the business rep and are given better odds ofwinning. For the first time, email can be sent out, RSVP'd to andattendance tracked to determine the success of the events valueproposition. The capacity of the venue can be fulfilled much earlier inthe evening than would normally been the case, resulting insignificantly higher sales for the venue.

The invention enables the provision of system directed emailinvitations, clear and simple demographically-targeted messages, smallsized rich media text, links to reservations, reservation tracking, aswell as event advance notice for email response rate tracking, analysisof event quality, event response status, event attendance analysis,customer Information, event analysis, and sample demographics reports.

While customers can capture and harvest valuable information fromconsumers with the intention of remarketing back to a captive audienceusing the system, they should be able to prove proper due diligence andconsent that they have received this consumer information with theconsent of the person. Opt-in features and signature capture, as well asweb enabled unsubscribe features help keep customers compliant and allowthem to demonstrate to their brand loyalists, their desire to respectthem as a customer.

The invention provides “signature capture” capability for consumerconsent. Patrons will have to opt in to may choose to opt out when beingsurveyed so they will not receive any customer information unless theywant to. Database storage is in a state-of-the-art secure facility toavoid potential data theft/hacking. Data is captured by & belongs tocustomers, it is their responsibility to comply with privacy legislationwith how they collect, host and use the data collected.

The invention can provide special event database capture, and the neededtools for the aforementioned industries in order to meet tactical needsto enhance, maintain and acquire new brand or product loyalists. Thesetactical needs can be fulfilled by the capture, integration into CRMinitiatives and the ability to leverage this information and technologyto further drive consumer loyalty through event participation and valueofferings.

The invention has the ability for businesses to reach consumers throughcustomer communications and through special offers entice consumers tofill out online surveys so that businesses can gauge the relevance,results or desirable improvements to enhance the continued success ofongoing and future promotions and product offerings.

In today's marketplace all companies are looking for new ways tomaintain and grow their market share. This is particularly true inmature markets such as the beer industry. Beer companies for exampleneed to use a push-pull marketing scenario. They need to have their beer“on tap” at licensed establishments and also need to convince the peoplevisiting those establishments to order their beer instead of theircustomers. The invention combined with a loyal rewards program forconsumers accomplishes both requirements.

The invention includes an ability of retaining patron informationinitially simply for responding to the issues of; verification andauthentication of identification, recognizing “double dipping” as wellas responding to the banned patron requirements of the hospitalityindustry.

Additional implementations of the invention include automotive dealersfor rapid capture of driver's license information, verification,database development, test drive tracking and new service customers inorder to facilitate more cost effective communications as well asoffering the ability to rate their customer experience and drivevaluable feedback to the people determining where marketing dollars arebeing spent as well as improved overall communications with theirexisting customer base. Other implementations include all retailestablishments involved in the sale of alcohol products, all retailestablishments involved in offering internal credit facilities to theircustomers, consumer home shows, home delivery of ID sensitive or agerestricted products and services, car rental agencies, parking control,and service to the long haul companies allowing backend verification ofall driver's against a Department of Motor Vehicle database once peryear.

The invention provides customer requirements for capturing consumer dataincluding portable handheld data collection unit software applications,embedded consumer information on Identification found on the barcode ormagnetic stripes on ID's such as a driver's licenses, consumer consenteither by a simple “YES/NO” or signature capture for due diligence proofof consensual consumer opt-in for customer relationship management (CRM)initiatives. Surveys are conducted using the handheld devices soestablishments can get immediate filed response from consumers. Collectemail addresses or telephone numbers, dial up and uploading of datacollected using a dial up Internet account to our back office servers,back office software applications allow a business to: review theaggregate or specific information collected in the filed by demographicinformation or survey data collected, conduct on line surveys withconsumers, send rich text emails targeted to their customers specificrequests for upcoming event information, invite customers to specialevents or offer other special promotions, track RSVPs of special offeror event invitations, track special offer or event attendance as well asevent attendance relative to RSVPs, ASP Revenue, secure Hosting ofCollected Data.

Revenue can be on the rental of hosted services for housing datacollected in the field using the portable handheld date collection unitwith outsourced management of hardware, software, and security relatingto collected data. Dial up accounts can be implemented as an uploadgateway to the back office servers with various levels of access toinformation collected from the end consumer, company fieldrepresentatives, territory managers to senior management and sales andmarketing staff.

Electronic rich text email is an option to be used with the back officeservices. CRM initiatives can be remotely managed using our hardware andsoftware combinations for electronic direct mail marketing. Internet,Extranet and Intranet sites can all be maintained on this system for ourcustomers.—Customers will be able to use “opt-in” and “opt-out” servicesso they can keep their mailing lists up to date as well as compliantwith the wishes of their customers as well as compliance to regulatoryand legislative requirements.—services such as database sweeping areoffered to our customer for use so they may contact third partieswhether they are government or private sources of obtaining current andaccurate data relative to their consumer data base, characterized as an“accuracy” service since holders of personal information have aresponsibility to maintain accurate information. “Sweeping service”again smacks of data mining. His isn't so much an issue as to whatyou're doing but how it is characterized. This service will help the“holders” of the personal information to maintain the accuracy of theirinformation holdings.

As well, systems such as loyalty and rewards programs may be used bybusinesses to offer value to consumers for being brand loyalists andmaintaining their loyalty to the brands. Redemption and Auctions can beused as an augmentation of the loyalty and rewards programs, businessesare able to use this system whereby their consumers can redeem prizes orspecial offering based on value offered and received and or time relatedspecial offers In addition, a scratch and win having an algorithm thatallows for better odds for loyal patrons can be implemented, as well asmanual name and license number entry for jurisdictions that do not havebarcodes or magnetic stripes.

Capturing License Data

License data is captured from the encoding on license identification todetermine the authenticity of the ID by checking the encoding, providedata to validate against the information printed on the ID, the bearerof the ID, and quickly and accurately record the information containedon the ID. Three different types of encoding are typically used ondriver's license identification. Each encoding standard can be easilyidentified. Many jurisdictions use more than one form of encoding onidentification. Each encoding standard has different data storagerequirements and capacities. Provided consent, the encoding format withthe highest storage capacity should be used as the source for theinformation that one captures, since some encoding formats may notcontain all the information that you require.

A prioritized list of the typical encoding formats in decreasing orderof storage capacity includes 2-D Barcode, 3-track magnetic stripe and1-D. The barcode reader can read 1-D bar-coded licenses. However, solittle information is stored in the 1-D barcode that it can onlyaccurately aid in determining the authenticity of the encoding. In orderto capture the information, one will use manual data entry instead ofscanning the 1-D barcode.

As illustrated in FIG. 13, to add a license manually simply press the“General” button. For each of the fields, a drop-down list is providedto aid the data entry process. For navigation, pressing the “General”button from the general info screen aborts the manual license entryoperation and returns you to the main ID screen. In general, the Nextand Previous buttons located at the bottom of the hand-held unit areused to navigate through the Manual License Entry screens. However,pressing the Previous button in the General Info screen does nothing.Pressing the Details/Save button from this screen will take you to theLicense Number screen, illustrated in FIG. 14, if a license number hasnot been entered; otherwise it will take you to the Details Summaryscreen, illustrated in FIG. 17. Once you have filled in all the datafields on the General Info screen by selecting an item from each of thedrop-down lists, press Next to proceed.

Use the stylus and keypad to enter the license number. Recheck entry toensure properly differentiated letters and numbers, in particular 1'sand I's, 0's and O's, and 5's and S's, on the license. Navigation:Tapping CLR on the keypad will clear all information entered in the datafield. Tapping BS once on the keypad will erase the last characterentered in the data field. The BS key functions similar to the Backspacekey on a regular keyboard. Pressing the General button from this screenwill take you to the General Info screen. Pressing the Details/Savebutton from this screen will take you to the Detail Summary screenprovided that you have finished entering the license number. Press NEXTto proceed to the First Name entry screen.

Use the stylus and keypad to enter the patron's first name. As you begintyping, you will notice the scroll list looking for a match from a listof common names based on the letters you have typed. If, as you type,you see the completed name in the scroll list you can select the name bytapping twice on it in the scroll list to populate the first name field.Recheck your spelling with the information printed on the patron ID. Ifthe information is cannot be easily read, ask the bearer of the ID toassist you.

Pressing the General button from this screen will take you to theGeneral Info screen. Pressing the Details/Save button from this screenwill take you to the Detail Summary screen. Press NEXT to proceed to theLast Name entry screen. The Last Name entry screen operates in the samemanner as the First Name entry screen, as illustrated in FIG. 15.Navigation: Pressing the General button from this screen will take youto the General Info screen. Pressing the Details/Save button from thisscreen will take you to the Detail Summary screen. When you are finishedentering the Last Name, press Next to proceed.

The final screen in the manual entry process is the Details Summaryscreen, illustrated in FIG. 17. All information entered during thecurrent manual entry session is displayed for review. If you need tomake any changes, use the Previous and Next buttons at the bottom of theunit to move through the screens. When you are finished editing, ifrequired, press the Details/Save button to go to the Details Summaryscreen. Review the information again, and then press the Details/Savebutton to save the license data. Navigation: Pressing the General buttonfrom this screen will take you to the General Info screen.

“Tap to Win!” Contests

As illustrated in FIG. 18, to launch a “Tap to Win!” contest, presseither of the buttons labeled “Tap to Win!” from the main ID screen. The“Tap to Win!” screen is displayed. Using the stylus, tap “Tap to Win!”The result is displayed on the screen. Pressing any one of the “Tap toWin!” buttons will return you to the main ID screen. Awarding prizesbased on operator defined odds. For example, a beer company might have10 t-shirts to give away at an event and the attendance may be 100. Inthis case, they would want to set the odds to one in ten to bestatistically confident that they can give every attendee a chance ofwinning.

The odds can be reconfigured at any time. With a paper based system,once the tickets are printed, the odds cannot be changed. The look andfeel of the scratch ticket can be easily customized. The operator onlyhas to have a single mobile computer instead of hundreds of scratchtickets. Since the consumer “scratches” the ticket on the mobilecomputer, fraudulent winning tickets cannot be created. A mobilecomputer is used to award the prizes based on operator-defined odds.Prior to application startup, the operator will type in the odds. Oncethe application is running screen(s), it can be used for the prizing. Asillustrated in FIG. 18, the operator would tap in the black rectangulararea of the first screen and then depending on the odds and whether thatperson won or not, either the second or third screen would be shown.

The system provides advantages including fulfilling regulatorycompliance with ID verification initiatives and capturing consumerinformation assisting in their CRM initiatives. The system assists inmaintaining and increasing market share, increasing profitabilitythrough brand loyalty marketing, enhancing existing marketinginitiatives, and provides immediate Analysis of and availability to thedata generated by their Marketing efforts. Customer management doneonline with a small portable unit easily connected to the Internet forback Office data analysis. It identifies “double-dippers”, maintains a“banned/VIP” list or custom messages, and provides customer surveysupport, an integrated bar code & magnetic Stripe reader, email addresscapture, signature capture, and a large data storage capacity.

The system facilitates single source communications and marketing of allage verification related management services, captures strategicinformation from consumers for clients to leverage their advertising,marketing, CRM and loyalty and reward program strategies, and the use ofstrategic alliances to enable rapid deployment of new products.

Venues and businesses have the ability to demonstrate not onlycompliance with legislation but good corporate governance with beingable to display and effect due diligence proof, therefore benefitingtheir best business practices but also their proactive approach thatthey can then leverage into good public relations within the community.

The invention is easy to use for untrained data collection labor. Thereis a high rate of consumer data collection ability of the system as wellas an ability to quickly and cost effectively display captured data tothe business management team in a more timely manner than a paper ballotsystem.

The invention enhances the profitability, cost effectiveness,efficiency, and quality of the ID experience for customers of theverifier and the identity verification products and services community.The invention can incorporate loyalty and rewards programs.Administration is quick, simple and done on an automated basis enablingcosts to clients to be kept as low as possible. The data providesdetailed and accurate information on the target market accounting ofcharges relative to the data requested, thus the mountains of supportdocumentation clients received previously through alternative channelsare no longer needed. It can become so simple that the acceptance andtransmission of the data can become the invoice and authorization forpayment.

Verifiers and other potential clients can take advantage of thissimplified yet very effective process for their identity verificationproducts and services requirements. A verification is performed, thedata downloaded, supported by 1d and 2d reading to ensure accuracy,which in turn is posted on the exchange providing accurate informationmaking it easy to receive data and thus allocate advertising resourcedollars more efficiently and cost effectively.

Advantages of the system include accurate and efficient capture ofindustry-specific personal consumer data in a manner which complies withindustry/geographically-specific privacy legislation, rapid transfer ofsuch data to data storage, electronic use of such data forindustry-specific loyalty/rewards programs, electronic use of such datato drive consumers to desired locations, electronic analysis of targetconsumer demographics and effectiveness of loyalty/rewards programs,speed and accuracy of data capture, secure data transmission to datastorage, online analysis of data, e-marketing engine for contactingclient's customers, and management of customer profile by establishment.

Global Rules

Embodiments of the present invention can further include a system forrewarding and identifying customers based on flexible rules for mobilecomputers utilizing the management of customer profiles by anestablishment. The system can provide a mobile electronic means ofidentifying particular consumers based on an encoded form ofidentification with a operator customizable message and rewarding suchconsumers with flexible criteria.

Although company specific loyalty and rewards cards have been around formany years, there has been no attempt to use a standard form ofidentification such as a driver's license to identify consumers byseveral companies and tie multiple company-specific customizablemessages, such as GOOD CUSTOMER or BANNED FROM THIS STORE, to each.Furthermore, there is currently no way to easily set flexible rewards invarying degrees of granularity down to a consumer specific level. Forexample to set the rule that any consumer who comes into the storebetween the hours of 4 PM and 4:30 PM and is a female between 5′-5″ and5′-8″ tall from a particular city will get 10% off their purchase.

Each company using the system will have an account online which willallows them to associate a particular main and supplemental message suchas a VIP, Frequent Visitor or BANNED, or Bad credit with a particularconsumer, create flexible rules, such as any consumer who comes into thestore between the hours of 4 PM and 4:30 PM and is a female between5′-5″ and 5′-8″ tall from a particular city will get 10% off theirpurchase, and be capable of uploading the rules and consumer specificmessages to the mobile computer over the Internet.

Once the mobile computer has the list of consumer specific messages andthe appropriate rules loaded, the hand-held computer will identify anyconsumers to whom a customizable message has been assigned or who areeligible for the rewards defined by the rules. Each time a piece of IDis processed by the mobile system, a time stamped record is stored onthe unit. This data is then uploaded to a central server the next timethe mobile computer is connected to the Internet so that a history ofconsumer rewards or denials can be tracked.

Multiple companies can use same encoded card to identify and rewardconsumers and flexible rules can be created online and uploaded to themobile computer verifying the IDs. By allowing multiple companies to usethe same ID card, state or country wide banned lists can be used, and adigital record is kept of the consumers as their ID is processed by themobile computers thereby tracking consumer reward/denial history.

Double-Dipping

Embodiments of the present invention can further include a system foridentifying multiple attempts to utilize a single piece ofidentification to gain access controlled by a mobile computer. Thesystem provides a solution to the problem of identifying “doubledippers” or multiple people trying to get restricted access using asingle piece of identification or multiple copies of the same piece ofID.

A hand-held computer will be used at the restricted entrance to verifythe IDs. Each time an ID is processed, the computer determines whethersomeone has already been admitted to the restricted area by using thatID and if so, denies access. When a person leaves the restricted area,the ID is scanned and removed from the internally stored list of IDs inthe restricted area so that the ID can subsequently be used to gainaccess without being denied. An algorithm stores the IDs that have beenprocessed and compares any new IDs to those processed.

The system takes the guesswork out of the process. By electronicallyidentifying multiple attempts to use the same piece of ID, the processis generally foolproof and consistent.

Efficient Email Capture

Embodiments of the present invention further include a method ofcapturing consumer email addresses in an efficient way using mobilecomputers. As illustrated in FIG. 5, one can either enter the emailaddress directly by clicking on the appropriate characters or you canuse the following buttons illustrated in TABLE 4 to speed up the datacapture process.

TABLE 4 Capture Buttons FN - Clicking this button inserts the patron'sfirst name as read electronically from the ID card. LN - Clicking thisbutton inserts the patron's last name as read electronically form the IDcard. TD - This button allows you to toggle between some common domainnames. As you click it, the domain cycles through the list of standarddomains. TE - This button allows you to toggle between some commondomain extensions such as .com, .net, .ca. As you click it, the domainextension cycles through the list of standard extensions. The followingbuttons can be used for clearing data: BS - This is the backspace keyand deletes the previous character CLR - This button clears the entireemail address entry

The mobile computer allows for the data encoded on 1D/2D barcodes ormagnetic stripes of various forms of identification to be read. As such,the consumer's first name and last name will typically be known by thetime the email capture screen is loaded thereby eliminating the need tore-enter the name if it forms part of the email address. In addition,the user interface has been designed such that the other portions of theemail address can be captured with a couple of clicks. The functionalityof the screen is also highly conducive to use on web pages and otherforms of electronic media where it can be packaged as an ActiveXcontrol.

Multimedia Presentation Involving Consumer Data Captured with MobileComputers

A visually appealing means of selecting a random winner from a group ofconsumers who have provided their personal and preference data ascaptured using mobile computers. The winner selection process iselectronic and more visually appealing for the consumers, and since theconsumer data was captured electronically, there will not be an issue ofillegible details on the winner, which would make verifying the winnervirtually impossible.

The consumer personal and preference data is captured using hand-heldcomputers. Whenever possible, the data encoded on driver's licenses isread to speed up the data capture process. When the random draw is to beperformed, the mobile computer is docked to a notebook computer and thenames transferred over. An application on the notebook machine thengenerates the list of consumer names along with the winner's name. Thisdata is then used by a flash presentation that is displayed on a plasmascreen connected to the notebook. The flash presentation appears asillustrated in FIGS. 20 and 21.

FIG. 21 illustrates consumer names being read and displayed. When allthe names have been loaded, the names of the consumers who have not beenchosen as the winner begin fading until only the winner's name is shown,as illustrated in FIG. 21.

Capture and Online Presentation of Consumer Photographs Linked toDriver's License Data

The invention can take digital photos of consumers and tie those imagesto one or more consumers whose personal and preference data has beencaptured. Previously, the digital images could not be referenced to oneor more consumers. The invention provides a digital means of connectingone or more consumers to a digital image. The user interface allows forquick association of an image with one or more people.

The operator approaches a consumer or group of consumers, takes adigital image and then individually collects their personal andpreference data using a mobile computer, using the data encoded ondriver's licenses wherever possible. After collection of each consumer'sdata, the screen illustrated in FIG. 19 is presented that allows theoperator to associate the image number with the consumer. When a photois taken of a group of individuals, the “Previous File” option may beused, otherwise, if it is of a single person or for a new image, “NextFile” will be selected. This procedure works since the digital cameraincrements the image name by one each time a shot is taken. Forsituations where the image number is out of sync with that on thecamera, the “File Number” option can be selected and the “+” and “−”buttons at the bottom can be used to set the image number so that thetwo are synchronized again.

The images on the camera's flash card are uploaded with the consumerdata and the two are matched up based on the image names. NOTE: Beforethe mobile computer's application is started, a three digit flash codeas found on the camera's flash card is entered. The images are thenrenamed to be prefixed by this code to allow images from multiplecameras to be uniquely identified; otherwise two cameras may have animage called IMG_(—)001.jpg.

Efficient Signature Capture and Storage on Mobile Computers

Generally consumer signatures are captured on paper and those that areelectronically captured store the signature as an image therebyconsuming a lot of disk space. Signatures are captured and storedelectronically allowing for rapid retrieval as compared to traditionalpaper based signatures, and digital signatures are stored in efficientbinary format as opposed to images to conserve disk space. Sufficientsignature points are stored to preserve the cursive nature of thesignatures.

A sample signature capture screen is illustrated in FIG. 6. As theconsumer signs, points along the signature are stored along with anyinstances where the stylus is returned in contact with the screen afterbeing lifted. This data is stored in a binary file in the followingformat illustrated in TABLE 5.

TABLE 5 Data Storage Format Number of Points (n) X1Y1 X2Y2 . . . XnYnIndex1 Index2 . . .

Index1, Index2 and so on are the index of the points for which thestylus was placed in contact with the screen after a lift. For example,if Index1 is 10, that would imply that the 9th point (since the index iszero based) was one for which the stylus was returned in contact withthe screen and as such should not be joined with a line to the 8thpoint. The algorithm that stores the signature points retrieves morepoints than are returned by traditional Mouse Move windows messages toallow for more cursive signatures. Once the binary file is stored, adesktop application reads the file and creates a bitmap image of thesignature to allow for visualization. Storage capacity is not much of anissue on the desktop machine.

Mobile System for Efficient Demographic Data Collection

FIG. 22 illustrates eight screens used to capture the demographic data.The four buttons along the bottom of each screen are used to navigate tothe first, previous, next and last screens (from left to right). Eachscreen performs the necessary validations to ensure accurate data andminimize data entry errors.

The City, First Name and Last Name screens are pre-loaded with a list ofthe top 500 values appropriate to each. These values are read as theapplication loads from three text files. As the operator types in any ofthese three screens, the closest match from the list is highlighted andat any point the operator can double click on a value in the list to popthat entry into the field and eliminate having to type the whole string.Once the details have been entered, the details screen displays the dataentered for verification. At this point the operator can either committhe data or move to a previous screen and correct an error.

Advantages Include data immediately stored in electronic format therebyeliminating the need to subsequently key in data as in paper basedsystems. Several time saving features allow for rapid data capture ascompared to traditional electronic data capture techniques. Screens aredesigned to allow the operator to enter as much or as little informationas desired.

Kiosk for Capturing Industry Specific Consumer Personal and PreferenceData with or without Driver's License Data Capture

The kiosk will allow consumers to enter their personal data by havingthe machine read the encoded data on an identification card (data can beread from magnetic stripes, 1D barcodes and 2D barcodes). If an ID cardis not available, the details can be keyed in with a keyboard along withresponses to a customizable survey. The kiosk will transfer the data toa remote data store by dialing out to the Internet at scheduled times.

Although the present invention has been described in considerable detailwith reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, other versionsare possible. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claimsshould not be limited to the description of the preferred embodimentscontained herein.

1. A portable remote information capture system at a remote site,comprising: (i) a module for capturing remote information comprisingconsumer personal data and consumer preference data, including: a readerfor capturing the consumer personal data encoded on a consumer'sidentification (ID); and an entry module useable by an operator forentering the consumer preference data, (ii) a module for communicatingwith a computer system, the computer system managing one or more globalrules and one or more rewards based on the one or more global rules, theone or more global rules being uploaded to the portable remoteinformation capture system via the communicating module; and (iii) amodule for identifying a consumer who is eligible for the one or morerewards defined by the uploaded one or more global rules, based on atleast the captured remote information and the uploaded one or moreglobal rules.
 2. The remote information capture system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the reader includes a bar code reader, including areader for a ID barcode and a 2D barcode.
 3. The remote informationcapture system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the communicating modulecomprises: a module for communicating the computer system in real time.4. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 1,comprising: a verification module for verifying the captured consumerpersonal data.
 5. The remote information capture system as claimed inclaim 1, comprising: a signature capture module for capturing a consumersignature.
 6. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim1, wherein the reader includes: a magnetic strip reader.
 7. The remoteinformation capture system as claimed in claim 1, comprising: a consumerinterface for consumer participation.
 8. The remote information capturesystem as claimed in claim 1, comprising: a fraudulent use detectionmodule for detecting fraudulent uses based on the remote information. 9.The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 1, comprising:a privacy consent module for capturing consumer privacy consentapproval.
 10. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim1, comprising: a digital camera for capturing a consumer photo.
 11. Theremote information capture system as claimed in claim 1, wherein theremote information is security rounds data.
 12. The remote informationcapture system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the remote informationincludes parking data.
 13. The remote information capture system asclaimed in claim 5 wherein the signature capture module comprises: amodule for storing the captured signature in a binary signature fileformat, including a module for identifying a plurality of points in ascreen along the consumer signature and storing the plurality of pointsalong with one or more indexes of one or more points among the pluralityof points, each of the one or more indexes representing a disconnectionwith another point; and a module for reading the binary signature fileformat and rendering it by interconnecting the data points and/orfurther by creating an image of the captured signature.
 14. The remoteinformation capture system as claimed in claim 1, comprising: a modulefor providing a demographic data capture screen, the demographic datacapture screen comprising: (i) a first entry screen comprising: a firstfield for displaying first entry data; and a list for displaying one ormore than one possible first entry data, high-lighting the closest matchfrom the list based on the input by the operator, a possible first entrydata being selectable from the list to complete the first entry data,the first field being updated by the selected first entry data; and (ii)a second screen comprising: a second field for displaying the firstentry data provided on the first field; and a button for saving the datadisplayed on the second field.
 15. The remote information capture systemas claimed in claim 10, comprising: a module for providing an imageinformation screen, the image information screen useable by the operatorfor associating the captured consumer photo with the consumer personaldata.
 16. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 1,comprising: a computer program operative to manipulate the capturedremote information.
 17. The remote information capture system as claimedin claim 16, wherein the computer program operative to manipulate thecaptured remote information manipulates the captured remote informationlocated on the computer system.
 18. The remote information capturesystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the communicating module comprisesat least one of: a docking cradle; a module for a dial up connection; amodule for Internet and/or Intranet access; a module for wirelessaccess.
 19. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 1,wherein the entry module comprises a manual entry screen comprising: (i)a first entry screen, comprising: a first field; a drop down list todisplay one or more than one possible first entry data, and a selectionmeans operable by the operator by which a possible first entry data isselected from the one or more than one possible first entry data, thefirst field being updated by the selected first entry data, (ii) asecond entry screen, comprising: a keypad activated by a stylus operableto input second entry data; a display means for displaying the input bythe keypad and stylus at the second field; a scroll list field todisplay one or more than one possible second entry data in response tothe input; and a selection means operable by the operator by which apossible second entry data is selected from the one or more than onepossible second entry data; and (iii) a third screen, comprising: athird field for displaying one of: the first entry data provided on thefirst entry screen; and the second entry data provided on the secondentry screen; and a button on the third screen for saving the datadisplayed third field data.
 20. The remote information capture system asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the consumer's ID comprises at least one ofa magnetic stripe and a barcode.
 21. The remote information capturesystem as claimed in claim 10, wherein the remote information furthercomprises the captured consumer photo.
 22. The remote informationcapture system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the captured consumerphoto is associated with the consumer personal data through an imagenumber.
 23. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim16, wherein the capturing module comprises: an email address generatormodule for automatically generating an email address for a consumerbased on the personal data captured by the reader and displaying theautomatically generated email address, and a module for accepting achange to the automatically generated email address from the consumer.24. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 16,wherein the computer program comprises an electronic contest generator.25. The remote information capture system as claimed in claim 16,wherein the computer program comprises: a program for driving customersto a web site utilizing the captured remote information.
 26. The remoteinformation capture system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the computerprogram comprises: an incorporator module for incorporating at least oneof the captured consumer personal data and consumer preference data as atext data within a multimedia presentation.
 27. The remote informationcapture system as claimed in claim 23, wherein the email addressgenerator module comprises: a module for providing an email capturescreen to capture the email address, the email capture screen comprisinga field and a plurality of buttons to manipulate an address displayingon the field, the buttons comprising: (i) a first button for insertingthe consumer's name from the captured remote information; (ii) a secondbutton for toggling between one or more domain names; and (iii) a thirdbutton for toggling between one or more domain extensions.
 28. Theremote information capture system as claimed in claim 1, comprising: amodule for defining odds for the one or more rewards; and a module forselecting a random winner from a group of consumers who have providedcorresponding consumer personal data and consumer reference data, theone or more rewards being provided based on at least one of the uploadedone or more global rules, the defining module and the selecting module.29. A method for a portable remote information capture device,comprising the steps of: (i) capturing remote information comprisingconsumer personal data and consumer preference data, including the stepsof: capturing the consumer personal data encoded on a consumer'sidentification, and providing to an operator an entry module operable toenter the consumer preference data and associate the consumer preferencedata with the consumer's personal data; (ii) communicating with acomputer system for managing one or more global rules and one or morerewards based on the one or more global rules; (iii) uploading the oneor more global rules to the portable remote information capture devicefrom the computer system; and (iv) identifying a consumer who iseligible for the one or more rewards defined by the uploaded one or moreglobal rules, the eligible consumer identified based on at least thecaptured remote information and the one or more global rules uploaded tothe remote information capture device.
 30. A system for providing areward to a consumer through a remote information capture system at aremote site, comprising: a module for managing one or more global rules;a module for managing one or more rewards based on the one or moreglobal rules; and a module for communicating with the remote informationcapture system, the one or more global rules being uploaded to theportable remote information capture system, the remote informationcapture system capturing remote information comprising consumer personaldata and consumer preference data and identifying a consumer who iseligible for the one or more rewards defined by the uploaded one or moreglobal rules, based on at least the captured remote information and theuploaded one or more global rules.
 31. A system as claimed in claim 30,comprising: a computer program operative to manipulate the capturedremote information.
 32. A system as claimed in claim 31, wherein thecomputer program comprises at least one of: an electronic marketingengine module for electronic marketing utilizing captured remoteinformation; an electronic contest generator; a module for drivingcustomers to a web site utilizing the captured remote information; anincorporator module for incorporating at least one of the capturedconsumer personal data and consumer preference data as a text datawithin a multimedia presentation.
 33. A system as claimed in claim 31,comprising: a module for storing the captured remote information.
 34. Asystem as claimed in claim 33, wherein the storing the storing capturedremote information is done in batch files or in real time.